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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: degree · land · bulb · mark · branch · stem · perch · band

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. degree — from a university
  4. degree — temperature
  5. bulb — for light
  6. mark — a grade
  7. bulb — for light
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. land — to come down
  10. land — a country
  11. stem — to come from
  12. perch — the fish
  13. degree — an amount
  14. mark — a trace
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. band — a music group
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. land — ground
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. branch — a division

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com